Minnesota to meet with Thibodeau, Jeff Van Gundy about leading the franchise

The Minnesota Timberwolves have meetings set with the two top targets of the franchise’s basketball operations and coaching search: Tom Thibodeau and Jeff Van Gundy, league sources told The Vertical.

Those meetings are expected to happen in the next few days, sources said.

Minnesota owner Glen Taylor will be a part of the interviews that will include the executive firm Korn Ferry, which has been coordinating the search, league sources said.

Korn Ferry played a major role in the hiring of Stan Van Gundy as the top basketball executive and coach with the Detroit Pistons, and Taylor has been pushing for the firm’s research and input into the possible recreation of the Pistons’ model with the Timberwolves, sources said.

Thibodeau, the former Chicago Bulls coach, and Van Gundy, the former coach of Houston and New York, have been individually gathering lists of front-office candidates to potentially partner with in Minnesota, sources said. The presence of rookie center Karl-Anthony Towns and a strong core of young talent make the Timberwolves’ job the most appealing on the coaching market.

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